Obsessive Compulsive Disorder
(OCD)

OCD therapy is a specialized treatment that I offer, designed to help you break free from the cycle of intrusive thoughts, fear, and compulsions that may feel like they have taken over your life. OCD has a way of making the things that matter most feel uncertain, dangerous, or urgently in need of an answer. You might logically know that something is unlikely but still feel an overwhelming need to check, review, avoid, research, confess, seek reassurance, or just figure it out before you can fully move on and go about your day. The problem is that every time we respond to OCD in the same way, our brain gets even better at taking us down that same road. What brings relief in the moment can unintentionally teach the brain that responding to the fear is what kept you safe, therefore reinforcing the behaviours and more broadly, the OCD cycle.

 

Together, we start building a new road and work through every part of the OCD cycle, from intrusive thoughts and uncomfortable sensations to reassurance-seeking, checking, avoidance, rumination, reviewing, researching, and those sneaky mental compulsions that can be so automatic that they are difficult to recognize. 

 

I use evidence-based approaches including Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), with a particular focus on Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP), which is widely considered the gold-standard psychological treatment for OCD. Because OCD can be misunderstood, it’s important to work with a therapist who has specific training in OCD and ERP. Research and clinical work with OCD is one of my greatest passions. I have spent years studying how OCD is learned, reinforced, challenged, and changed. I continue to be amazed by the brain's remarkable capacity for change and the results that my dedicated clients gain from our work together. My understanding of OCD is also informed by the people in my life who have struggled as a result of OCD, giving me an appreciation for both the clinical side and what it can actually feel like to live alongside it.

 

As such, there is very little you can bring into therapy with me that I haven’t already encountered in some capacity. OCD can produce thoughts that feel scary, shameful, strange, or completely at odds with who you are. You don't need to beat around the bush, make things sound rational, or worry that I'm going to judge you. Therapy will become a place to eventually say the things you may have never said out loud. Rather than spending our sessions trying to prove that your feared outcome will never happen, we'll work toward helping you become less dependent on certainty, more comfortable allowing thoughts to simply be thoughts, and more confident in your ability to handle discomfort and uncertainty when they show up. From your very first session you will leave with actionable steps to take to tackle OCD so you can begin to take charge of your life. 

 

I work with all sub-types of OCD and have successfully treated presenting concerns such as:

-Harm OCD (including fears of harming yourself or others, losing control, acting on an unwanted thought, or being responsible for someone getting hurt).

-Contamination OCD (including fear of germs / illness, blood, bodily fluids, HIV, or other infectious diseases).

-Hit-and-Run OCD (including fears of accidentally hitting a person, animal, or object while driving, causing an accident, or leaving the scene without realizing it and the potential resulting legal consequences).

-Relationship OCD (including persistent doubts about loving your partner(s), being attracted to them, being compatible, or your partner’s feelings toward you).

-Prenatal and Postpartum OCD (including unwanted intrusive thoughts about harm coming to your baby, accidentally or intentionally causing harm, contamination, illness, or fears about being an unsafe parent).

-Sexual Intrusive Thoughts (including unwanted thoughts, images, sensations, flashbacks, questioning, attraction, inappropriate sexual behaviour, or pedophilia).

-Moral and Religious Scrupulosity (including fears of being a bad person or monster, having done something morally wrong, committing a sin, praying incorrectly, guilt, needing to be certain your intentions are good).

-Health and Mortality Obsessions (including fears of having or developing a serious illness, missing symptoms, dying, loved ones dying, or being unable to cope with uncertainty about health and mortality).

-Somatic and Sensorimotor OCD (including hyperawareness of breathing, blinking, swallowing/saliva, heartbeat, twitching and other bodily sensations, eye contact, or fears that you will never stop noticing a sensation).

-Just Right OCD (including needing things to feel complete, even, symmetrical, exact, or “right,” and repeating actions until they feel correct).

-Pure O (including distressing intrusive thoughts accompanied by less visible compulsions such as rumination, mental reviewing, checking your feelings, reassurance seeking, analyzing memories, or trying to achieve certainty).

I also offer supportive therapy for partners, family members, and others who care about someone experiencing OCD. It can be difficult to know when you are providing meaningful support and when reassurance, checking, or accommodating OCD may unintentionally be keeping the cycle going. I can help you better understand what your loved one is experiencing, learn how to respond to OCD in supportive ways, establish healthy boundaries, and care for your own wellbeing in the process.
 
At Levy Therapy, I offer virtual therapy sessions across Ontario and Quebec so you can do this work from the comfort and privacy of your own space. If you don’t see an available appointment time, feel free to reach out or add yourself to my waitlist.